DODGE CITY (1939)

After spending most of the ‘30s as grind house fodder & kiddie matinee fare, the Western went big-budget in 1939 w/ STAGECOACH, DESTRY RIDES AGAIN, THE OKLAHOMA KID, UNION PACIFIC and JESSE JAMES. They even re-released Wm Hart’s silent classic, TUMBLEWEEDS/'25. And, biggest of all, this posh Technicolor horse opera which effectively shows the impersonal professionalism that was the downside to Hollywood’s annus mirabilis; are we being entertained or steamrolled? But Errol Flynn looks fine in Western gear while Bruce Cabot makes a smoothly effective villain & the usual Warners crew delivers. Look for the series of flawless camera set-ups director Michael Curtiz pulls out of his bag of tricks for the big Flynn/de Havillland courtship scene. In the end, the film is as irresistible as Olivia, though sadly the DVD reveals more "three-strip" Technicolor registration problems than hoped for.